Global biological threats to health: an imperative for collaboration

Biological threats to health are challenging governments worldwide. National strategies for preventing and managing existing and emerging threats require significant collaboration across borders, sectors, services, agencies and professions. Perhaps most important are the partnerships of key national health leaders who can develop and foster these relationships. Government Chief Nursing Officers (CNOs) and Chief Medical Officers (CMOs), providing leadership in more than 100 countries worldwide, play crucial roles in addressing biological threats to health. However, much of this leadership is exercised without the benefit of strong collaborative relationships between these two key national leaders. Unfortunately, without functional partnerships between nurses and physicians at all levels, national and global capacity to address biological and other threats will be greatly compromised. For these reasons, the first ever global forum for CNOs and CMOs teams was hosted by the Lillian Carter Center for International Nursing in Atlanta, in June 2004. Representatives from 70 countries focused on biological threats in relation to three key purposes: (1) gaining shared scientific and practical knowledge; (2) developing and strengthening collaboration and partnerships among CNOs and CMOs; and, (3) creating a joint plan for advancing national preparedness. This article describes the content, process and outcomes of this historic meeting.